New pastor comes to Beechwood Congregational Church

Just a few weeks into his new role, Stephen McDonald has some long-term goals for the church, including a desire to “breathe new life” into the congregation.

Staff Reporter

Moving from the south to the northeast was not a huge adjustment for Arkansas native Stephen McDonald – it was old hat.

Beechwood Congregational Church’s new minister, 28, used to live in Lowell, Mass. with his wife, Amanda, before the pair moved back down south. McDonald hails from Springdale, Arkansas while Amanda is from Mississippi; the couple was living in Hattiesburg, Miss. before McDonald landed his new job in Cohasset.

Moving to Mass. “wasn’t that big a deal,” McDonald says with a slight Southern drawal, adding that he left an ice storm behind just before moving, so even the cold wasn’t a major shock. “It’s not a big surprise or adjustment, really.”

So far the transition has been smooth.

“It’s a beautiful area,” McDonald says of Cohasset and the South Shore. “The interactions I’ve had with folks have been very pleasant and kind. I couldn’t have had a warmer welcome from the church body here; they’re really wonderful people.”

This is McDonald’s first full-time job as a pastor. He previously attended the University of Southern Mississippi and the New Orleans Baptist Seminary, and spent two years working in Lowell before moving back to Miss.

“We didn’t know we’d come back here,” he says. “It’s just the way things shook out.”

McDonald doesn’t believe in coincidence, however, explaining that he felt called to come to Cohasset.

“It was a sense of calling from God, first and foremost,” McDonald says of applying for the pastor position. “My heart and passion had to be shaped… It now gives me great joy to be able to serve the church and point them to the joy and delight that is found in God and in Christ.”

Before he could join Beechwood, McDonald had to make another slight adjustment – going from a Baptist background to a Congregational church. However, the pastor says that the differences are minimal.

Both denominations lean toward the conservative side, which McDonald assures is “not ‘fundy,’” or overly fundamental.

“I knew there really wasn’t any theological difference I couldn’t get over,” the pastor explains. “There are a lot of similarities and things we had the same views on that molded us together.”

Just a few weeks into his new role, McDonald has some long-term goals for the church, including a desire to “breathe new life” into the congregation.

“We want to see people from all generations be part of the church,” says McDonald, adding that he hopes his youth will be an asset.

“My goal right now is to grow the relationship in the existing church body and expand into the community,” the pastor says. “Hopefully people will learn there’s something going on in this church.

“Beechwood is still alive, and desiring to grow,” McDonald adds.

One major facet of the church’s community outreach has been the coffeehouse ministry. There is an open mike night for teens and twenty-somethings on the first Friday of every month in the church basement, which was transformed last summer into the chic, colorful Ground Level Café.

McDonald recently attended his first coffeehouse in early March. “I’m all about it,” he said of the events, adding that he thinks Ground Level founder Amanda Thompson “has been doing a wonderful job with the coffeehouse, and the church has embraced it.”

When he’s not enjoying his church’s own coffeehouse, McDonald can often be found at the Cohasset Starbucks on Route 3A. He also enjoys French Memories.

He hopes his wife, Amanda, will enjoy the little things about Cohasset, too; she is currently finishing a teaching contract back home but will join her husband in Cohasset in June.

McDonald thinks she’s going to love life in Cohasset. “My wife is more of a small-town type person; I think she’ll really like the area.”

The pastor hopes that he and his wife will stay at Beechwood – and in Cohasset – for a long time.

“I would love to settle down here and raise a family,” he says. “Our desire is to pour ourselves in and hop on board for the ride, and to see God change lives and grow the church.”

One indication that McDonald will fit in just fine? He already loves the Patriots and the Red Sox, although he admits that he is “also a Cardinals fan.”

Perhaps his parishioners will give him a pass.

For more information on Beechwood Congregational Church, visit www.beechwoodcc.org or call 781-383-0808.